Story
Vidya
Balan's
Sherni
opens
with
a
wide
shot
of
the
sprawling
luscious
green
jungles
of
Bijaspur.
We
see
a
forest
officer
imitating
the
movements
of
a
tiger.
This
scene
is
symbolic
in
a
way
about
how
humans
have
encroached
forestlands
over
the
years.
In
this
tug
of
war
between
man
and
animals,
arrives
an
upright
DFO
(deputy
forest
officer)
Vidya
Vincent
(Vidya
Balan),
who
is
entrusted
with
the
task
of
capturing
an
unsettled,
man-eating
tigress
who
has
instilled
fear
in
the
villagers.
Slowly
as
the
film
progresses,
we
see
how
Vidya
tries
to
preserve
a
balance
in
the
environment
with
the
help
of
her
team
and
the
local
allies,
while
tackling
gender
bias,
patriarchy,
poachers
and
vested
political
interests
on
her
way
to
capture
the
'sherni'.
Direction
Kudos
to
Amit
Masurkar
for
taking
up
an
issue
that's
the
need
of
the
hour!
While
the
filmmaker
tries
to
present
both
the
sides
when
it
comes
to
exploring
the
complex
issues
of
conflict
between
the
humankind
and
animals,
it's
the
writing
which
fumbles
a
bit
and
falls
short
of
creating
a
solid
impact
as
expected.
In
a
bid
to
keep
things
at
its
most
subtle
level,
the
director
ends
up
giving
the
film
a
documentary
film-like
feel
which
might
not
entice
a
large
section
of
audience
even
if
the
subject
has
an
universal
appeal.
Barring
a
few
places,
the
satirical
scenes
too,
lack
a
punch.
The
sluggish
pace
of
the
narrative
also
makes
the
film
lose
some
of
its
charm.
Despite
having
an
extremely
talented
star
cast,
Amit
Masurkar
fails
to
utilize
them
in
a
way
that
could
have
yielded
a
better
product.
Performances
In
one
of
her
interviews,
Vidya
Balan
had
mentioned
that
her
character
in
Sherni
is
that
of
a
woman
who
is
passive-aggressive.
She
is
a
quiet
doer
who
would
rather
go
unnoticed
and
be
left
alone
to
do
her
job.
While
the
actress
brilliantly
conveys
this
side
of
her
character,
you
do
feel
a
bit
impatient
at
places
since
Amit
barely
gives
her
any
scope
to
channel
her
inner
'sherni',
even
when
it's
required.
The
underplaying
of
her
character
just
seems
to
be
a
bit
off
the
hook
especially
when
we
all
know
that
she's
such
an
incredible
performer.
Nevertheless,
Vidya
is
one
of
the
reasons
why
Sherni
keeps
you
glued
to
the
screen.
Brijendra
Kala
is
bang
on
with
his
terrific
comic
timing.
Be
it
his
scenes
with
Vidya
Balan
or
the
rest
of
the
cast,
the
man
lends
a
lighter
tone
to
the
otherwise
sombre
narrative.
Sharad
Saxena
and
Vijay
Raaz
are
luminous
in
their
respective
roles.
Ila
Arun
and
Mukul
Chadda
lend
a
fair
performance
even
if
they
barely
get
a
chance
to
be
in
the
centre
stage.
Neeraj
Kabi
gets
a
thumbs
up
from
us.
Technical
Aspects
Right
from
the
eerie
silence
of
the
jungle
to
the
flora
and
fauna,
Rakesh
Haridas'
camera
work
is
top-notch
and
creates
the
perfect
ambience
which
is
required
for
a
film
like
Sherni.
On
the
flipside,
the
film
could
have
been
a
lot
more
tighter
if
the
editing
scissors
were
a
bit
more
sharper,
especially
in
the
first
30-40
minutes
of
the
film
as
some
of
the
scenes
come
across
as
repetitive.
Music
There's
barely
any
scope
for
songs
in
Vidya
Balan-starrer
Sherni
and
thankfully,
the
makers
too,
didn't
unnecessarily
throw
in
tracks
simply
to
add
to
the
runtime
of
the
film.
Verdict
In
one
of
the
scenes
in
Sherni,
Sharat
Saxena's
character
Pintu
and
a
young
lady
forest
officer
argue
over
the
poo
of
an
animal,
whether
it's
of
the
man-eater
tigress
or
a
leopard.
Pintu
finally
puts
an
end
to
the
clash
by
saying,
"Kahe
ko
argue
kar
rahi
rahi.
Bahut
experience
hai
yaha
pe." One
wished
Sherni
had
more
of
such
scenes
which
throw
light
on
how
patriarchy
and
gender
bias
seeps
deep
in
our
society.